A Thousand Destinies, One Journey
by SilverPoint
Summary: Character exploration piece for Link as a character on the whole, not game specific. Constructive criticism appreciated.
1. The Path

Link… that was his name, and it was his world. He was the link between the first hero of courage and the last, and every one in between. He marked a child when he felt Ganon stir, often the descendant of his first form, like the sages passed their power from descendant to descendant. But his mark was different. He chose them to be him, to find him. They would take his sword, the master sword, as it was called, the mirror shield, and find some items that he liked, bombs, a bow, a boomerang. Then they would come to find the triforce of courage. Such was their destiny. He lived within each one, he was each one, hiding his power from himself until it was needed. He had had many adventures, and more were still to come, he knew. He dwelled briefly on the Four Sword, a weapon he had used twice to fight the sorcerer Vaati while the master sword kept Ganon in check. He remembered all his battles with Ganon, saving princess Zelda, and his feeling. He was always the master, the guide, but also the learner. He didn't know he would succeed, he didn't know what Ganon was planning, but he had experience fighting him. He felt like he had a thousand destinies, but only one journey

_I have a thousand destinies but just one path_

_A dozen times I fought for her_

_Again and again I defeated him_

_Everything seems to reoccur_

_Yet it changes every time_

_I feel like I'm walking down a path_

_With a hundred twists and turns_

_And every time they feel my wrath_

_I walk a different way_

_There's a million things that I don't know_

_Although I can make a guess_

_There's a million paths that I can go_

_Along but I must pick one_

_I don't know yet it seems that where I'm sent _

_Is determined by the wind_

_And when my foe is vanquished, my energy spent_

_Time takes me back and again _

_I fight on_

_And I don't know what will happen next_

_One's lifetime's gone_

_And another takes its place_

_It just seems so pointless at times _

_As I travel down the road_

_But then I hear the chimes_

_Of victory and I see_

_That the path in front of me_

_Leads to a happier time_

_When everyone will be free_

_I have a thousand destinies but one journey_

_And it leads to a happier time_

_When everyone will be free_

_And I can just be me_


	2. What Went Right

He was feeling a bit down on himself, looking back, and seeing what could have happened. But what could, in his case, can still, and learning from his mistakes was exactly what he needed to do. He needed to see what he could have done when Ganon made this move or that, in case he tried it again. He could see his past, because history was repeating itself, and he had the ultimate advantage of being there in the first place. He had the power to keep Ganon off, until one day he was finally gone. But even if that day was centuries off, he could make it shorter every time. He had to keep his hope, because he would lose. And he could only make that mistake once. Ganon could lose as many times as he wanted, then he could try again. Although, he could probably eventually defeat Ganon. But hundreds of lives would be lost, the lives he was supposed to be protecting. The lives he was responsible for, the people he had sworn to protect. That could not be allowed to happen. He had learned from his past, and he would defend his future. He couldn't let his failures get to him, he had to use them, to learn from them. He couldn't be hindered by the past; it had to flow into him. He was of the past and the future, but not the present… in the times of peace, he was but an onlooker, with an eye out for danger. He could not let himself fall into despair in these times, though. He could not tell then when Ganon would attack. He kept the past and future both in mind so that he was always ready for anything. He would not be caught off guard.

_What's the use in going on?_

_I sometimes ask myself_

_But this is no average job_

_There's more at stake than wealth_

_The past and future have combined_

_In my mind and they tell_

_Me what to do but I will not _

_Sink into despair as they compel_

_I learn, I think,_

_I plot, I dream,_

_I watch and devise_

_My next scheme_

_To bring this giant down_

_I have tasks that I must repeat_

_I have a princess I must save_

_A villain that I must defeat_

_I wonder at the point of it all_

_But I learn from it just the same_

_I have driven my foe off_

_Every time that he came_

_But now that I have seen so much_

_I wonder if I've seen anything_

_While only looking to the past_

_I can't tell what the future will bring_

_So I think about it too,_

_I prepare for what I know_

_And my mind 's ready for anything_

_I'm always ready to go_

_Whatever my foe might throw at me_

_I will always be ready_

_Whatever blow he might deal to me_

_I will remain steady._


End file.
